Apple Sunset

iPhone 3GS

Discontinued 12 Sept 2012

Released

19 Jun 2009

Announced

8 Jun 2009

Launch price from

$199

Discontinued

12 Sept 2012

Lifespan

3 years, 3 months

Category
iPhone
Status
Discontinued
Apple support status
Obsolete (Apple no longer services it)
Release type
Refresh of an existing model
Previous model
iPhone 3G
Replaced by
iPhone 4
Official Apple page
No longer available on Apple’s website
Tech specs
Apple specs ↗
Press release
Apple Newsroom ↗
More information
iPhone 3GS on Wikipedia ↗

Notes

The iPhone 3GS was Apple's third iPhone and it looked exactly like the second. The case, the screen and the buttons were all carried over from the iPhone 3G, so the only way to tell them apart was the printing on the back. Everything that changed was inside.

Speed was the point. The S stood for it, according to Phil Schiller on stage, and Apple claimed the phone ran up to twice as fast as the iPhone 3G at everything from opening apps to loading web pages.

The camera could record video for the first time. Both earlier iPhones took still photographs only. This one shot video, focused automatically, and let you trim a clip on the phone before sending it.

Voice Control was also new. You held the home button and spoke, and the phone would dial a name from your contacts or play a particular artist. It worked without an internet connection, which Siri two years later did not.

Apple advertised it at $199 for 16GB and $299 for 32GB. Both prices required a new two-year contract with AT&T, which was how phones were sold in America at the time. On the same day Apple cut the older iPhone 3G to $99, the first iPhone to be sold for under a hundred dollars.

It stayed on sale for an extraordinarily long time. The 16GB and 32GB versions went when the iPhone 4 arrived in 2010, but Apple kept an 8GB model in the range until September 2012, three years and two months after launch, which remains the longest run of any iPhone.

It was announced on 8 June 2009 at the 'WWDC 2009' keynote, and reached customers on 19 June 2009 at $199.

iPhone release history

  1. 2026

  2. 18 Sept 2026

    iPhone 18 Pro LaunchCurrent

    iPhone 18 Pro Max LaunchCurrent

    iPhone 17 Pro Discontinued

    iPhone 17 Pro Max Discontinued

  3. ↑ about 1 year later
  4. 2025

  5. 19 Sept 2025

    iPhone 17 ReleasedCurrent

    iPhone 17 Pro Released

    iPhone 17 Pro Max Released

  6. 9 Sept 2025

    iPhone 15 Discontinued

    iPhone 16 Pro Discontinued

    iPhone 16 Pro Max Discontinued

  7. ↑ 7 months later

  8. 19 Feb 2025

    iPhone 14 Discontinued

  9. ↑ 5 months later
  10. 2024

  11. 20 Sept 2024

    iPhone 16 ReleasedCurrent

    iPhone 16 Pro Released

    iPhone 16 Pro Max Released

  12. 9 Sept 2024

    iPhone 13 Discontinued

    iPhone 15 Pro Discontinued

    iPhone 15 Pro Max Discontinued

  13. ↑ about 1 year later
  14. 2023

  15. 22 Sept 2023

    iPhone 15 Released

    iPhone 15 Pro Released

    iPhone 15 Pro Max Released

  16. 12 Sept 2023

    iPhone 12 Discontinued

    iPhone 13 mini Discontinued

    iPhone 14 Pro Discontinued

  17. ↑ about 1 year later
  18. 2022

  19. 16 Sept 2022

    iPhone 14 Released

    iPhone 14 Pro Released

  20. 7 Sept 2022

    iPhone 11 Discontinued

    iPhone 12 mini Discontinued

    iPhone 13 Pro Discontinued

    iPhone 13 Pro Max Discontinued

  21. ↑ about 1 year later
  22. 2021

  23. 24 Sept 2021

    iPhone 13 Released

    iPhone 13 mini Released

    iPhone 13 Pro Released

    iPhone 13 Pro Max Released

  24. 14 Sept 2021

    iPhone 12 Pro Discontinued

    iPhone 12 Pro Max Discontinued

    iPhone XR Discontinued

  25. ↑ 10 months later
  26. 2020

  27. 13 Nov 2020

    iPhone 12 mini Released

    iPhone 12 Pro Max Released

  28. 23 Oct 2020

    iPhone 12 Released

    iPhone 12 Pro Released

  29. 13 Oct 2020

    iPhone 11 Pro Discontinued

    iPhone 11 Pro Max Discontinued

  30. ↑ 6 months later

  31. 15 Apr 2020

    iPhone 8 Discontinued

    iPhone 8 Plus Discontinued

  32. ↑ 7 months later
  33. 2019

  34. 20 Sept 2019

    iPhone 11 Released

    iPhone 11 Pro Released

    iPhone 11 Pro Max Released

  35. 10 Sept 2019

    iPhone 7 Discontinued

    iPhone 7 Plus Discontinued

    iPhone XS Discontinued

    iPhone XS Max Discontinued

  36. ↑ 10 months later
  37. 2018

  38. 26 Oct 2018

    iPhone XR Released

  39. 21 Sept 2018

    iPhone XS Released

    iPhone XS Max Released

  40. 12 Sept 2018

    iPhone 6s Discontinued

    iPhone 6s Plus Discontinued

    iPhone X Discontinued

  41. ↑ 10 months later
  42. 2017

  43. 3 Nov 2017

    iPhone X Released

  44. 22 Sept 2017

    iPhone 8 Released

    iPhone 8 Plus Released

  45. ↑ about 1 year later
  46. 2016

  47. 16 Sept 2016

    iPhone 7 Released

    iPhone 7 Plus Released

  48. 7 Sept 2016

    iPhone 6 Discontinued

    iPhone 6 Plus Discontinued

  49. ↑ 6 months later

  50. 21 Mar 2016

    iPhone 5s Discontinued

  51. ↑ 6 months later
  52. 2015

  53. 25 Sept 2015

    iPhone 6s Released

    iPhone 6s Plus Released

  54. 9 Sept 2015

    iPhone 5c Discontinued

  55. ↑ about 1 year later
  56. 2014

  57. 19 Sept 2014

    iPhone 6 Released

    iPhone 6 Plus Released

  58. 9 Sept 2014

    iPhone 4s Discontinued

  59. ↑ about 1 year later
  60. 2013

  61. 20 Sept 2013

    iPhone 5c Released

    iPhone 5s Released

  62. 10 Sept 2013

    iPhone 4 Discontinued

    iPhone 5 Discontinued

  63. ↑ about 1 year later
  64. 2012

  65. 21 Sept 2012

    iPhone 5 Released

  66. 12 Sept 2012

    iPhone 3GS Discontinued

  67. ↑ about 1 year later
  68. 2011

  69. 14 Oct 2011

    iPhone 4s Released

  70. ↑ 1 year, 4 months later
  71. 2010

  72. 24 Jun 2010

    iPhone 4 Released

  73. 7 Jun 2010

    iPhone 3G Discontinued

  74. ↑ about 1 year later
  75. 2009

  76. 19 Jun 2009

    iPhone 3GS Released

  77. ↑ about 1 year later
  78. 2008

  79. 11 Jul 2008

    iPhone 3G Released

    iPhone Discontinued

  80. ↑ about 1 year later
  81. 2007

  82. 29 Jun 2007

    iPhone Launch

More in iPhone

All iPhone →

Something not right on this page? Tell us